Young Tailor Sews Her Way Out of Poverty

Twenty-two-year old Jacqueline is one of the young people whose lives have been changed for the better through ChildFund’s youth empowerment projects in Zambia.

Jacqueline stays busy in her tailoring shop.

She owns her own tailoring shop and makes student uniforms for the local school. Jacqueline also has regular clients in the Mpanshya community for whom she makes clothes.

But how did Jacqueline manage to own a shop of her own at such a young age?

“Life was really hard for me before I learned about the ChildFund livelihood programs,” she explains. “I failed to continue school after grade nine, as my parents could no longer afford to pay my tuition fees and other school requirements.”

After dropping out of school, Jacqueline started spending most of her time doing odd jobs at people’s farms to help her family earn a living. But the jobs were poorly paid, and Jacqueline’s family continued to struggle.

“I joined my mother as she did odd jobs, but we never made enough to make ends meet. It was very hard and sometimes we went to bed without eating anything,” Jacqueline recalls.

Her life took a turn for the better when a friend invited her to a youth meeting organized by ChildFund in Mpanshya. After that meeting, she began attending trainings in entrepreneurship, life skills and basic accounting, among others.

After being trained in tailoring and clothing design, Jacqueline and other youth received sewing machines. “I was in the group business for three years and after sharing the profits, I decided to buy my own sewing machine and do my own business on the side, she explains.

As her business grew, Jacqueline decided to leave the group and set up her own shop at the local market. Immediately, she was approached by the local school who later gave her a contract to start making uniforms.

Today her business has grown, and Jacqueline has now taken on the responsibility of helping send her siblings to school.

“I’m very happy now that I can help my parents send my younger siblings to school,” Jacqueline says, “and I will forever remain grateful to ChildFund for empowering me with tailoring skills.”